Plan for robotic garage may give parking a lift

[bobliocatt]

Plan for robotic garage may give parking a lift

The owner of an Irish pub in South Tampa will be able to fit more spaces on less land.

By JANET ZINK, Times Staff Writer

Published May 20, 2005

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In a region where parking is increasingly a problem, two local developers have come up with a solution.

Colin Breen, owner of the South Tampa Irish pub Four Green Fields, plans to build a 180-space robotic parking garage on a parking lot two doors down from the popular watering hole.

"It allows a greater intensity of development on a piece of land and allows more parking on a smaller area," said Steve Michelini, a land-use consultant for Breen. Breen will also construct a hotel, possibly with an Irish theme, on the site.

Breen originally planned to build a conventional parking garage. While researching robotic parking garages on the Internet, he discovered one of the world's leading manufacturers was in Clearwater. He figured he was fated to invest in the technology.

The new plan allows Breen to fit more cars on less land. The traditional garage would have had a footprint of more than 32,000 square feet. This one takes up 6,000 square feet.

That means Breen was able to design more green space into his hotel project and also preserve some surface parking.

The Tampa City Council approved Breen's plans at a zoning hearing Thursday.

For full article:

http://www.sptimes.com/2005/05/20/Hillsbor...otic_gara.shtml

[monsoon]

This one was near my sister's apartment in the Tokyo area.

[Rock2uf]

Pretty awesome stuff. I can see how these garages could be a pain if a lot of people had to retrieve their car at once. Or, on the flip-side of that, if a lot of drivers needed to park their car at the same time of the day. In situations like these, especially the last one, where do the waiting drivers go? The plans I have seen don't show any type of "waiting line."

[asonj23]

I really like the idea of parking systems like this. Isn't there one proposed in Ft. Lauderdale?

[KendallKid]

We have a few in downtown Miami. I always thought they looked cool. but to park in them is 12 bucks an hour.